Mouthpiece for cap magazines



Feb. 2, 1954 F. c. RODMAN MOUTHPIECE FOR CAP MAGAZINES 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Aug. 12, 1952 INVENTO/ L75 Baa/WAN ATTORNEY 1954 F. c. RODMAN MOUTHPIECE FOR CAP MAGAZINES '2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 12, 1952 [NVENTOR- F? A/wC Poo/WW.

ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 2, 1954 MOUTHPIEGE FOR=GAP MAGAZINES E ancisgcrno ma e Ga den-Emma -,,ass smt ,t mcr an ;S.ea p ..,Gcrnoratiopre ina w cfwilm n to e aa com ration'o l lcla- ."lthisa-inventionir l t it can-cineim hinesso .the genera type shown in th Mack n-andfico ,win I Batent. Nc.,2,563,65l4 dated Au ust '7 1951, w i r a tedito dispens an -ap y ic-{mi bottles preformed capshavihgsa. central. diaphragm adapted to vform a w closure .forrtl' e -m ilk lj ot l nd a depend na-flare g tcd s i -Wh is adapt d tube. stric ed and seaiedraround the r nec of th ower-a ha fonan ob ct-topmvide improved dispensing r. means to permit the 9.31 8 to be removedonegbyone from a stack in :t a imasaz n "Anotherobject is ,tmprov'ide .av mouth ring if or t ca n-ina azin wh adante f r ut ma al y to. diff r nt: s zes cit-cap kirts.

Ano he .nbie'ct iris tto pr i a mon i n whichjs extensiblegto permit the. passage of an oversize cap skirt.

"Various. other, objects. and advantages yvill be apparent ,as the nature ,otthe inventionv is-more l d sc ose The machine in general-includcs picker mechanism jor picking individual heaps vsuccessively from a stack I of V nested caps and feeding the ;-pic-ked caps to a bottle ,cap.pinglstation. The picker. mechanism withdrawslthe; soapstone-sat re, time through amQ lth ,rihg., at the ,end'pf ithezcap magazine. "The mouth ring has a lip opening I which is somewhat smaller in diameter than the largest diameter of the cap skirt and serves to estrai andshcldithe-c p theimasazine- It is of a size however topermit a skirtuto pass when the foremost cap is withdrawn by the picker mechanism.

1:111 rdance withltheupresent invention :the

;,mouth ring is made-,in:two.-.sections, ata-leastione ef whichis mounted lforlmovement in -a direction to enlarge the lip opening. This movement is restricted by suitable means, such as springs or weights so that the ring is normally maintained in a given position with respect to the caps which are to be passed therethrough. The movable mounting for the ring however permits it to adjust itself automatically so as to accommodate irregularities in the sizes of the cap skirts. This prevents the caps with the larger skirts from becoming stuck and not feeding properly and also prevents a plurality of caps with smaller skirts from feeding at the same time.

The nature of the invention will be better understood by referring to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which a specific embodiment has been set forth for purposes of illustration.

c. A hrasmJl 10f. th ir-caps, andis moiinted g i l nes il .twhich is t Vent. in n on om r e -(a 10W? section Tor-the :lower Y end sh win -th :re atio l th s ick m ch nism;

i v nt o i sh w a i nlisdi-vtctang ticn i capping in achinesof- :the general gagpe sho the..Mack-in st m -tent above mentioned nd on rs z-muc -t ereofeis as t diaphra ita sau tin r IL- nd alflut difiar ne i -.cated as com r sin ai ucticnths vraciairted= b r cip catedi and :tofien as pou in im i hous ng l s nd th central gEig hjs-a pattialrs d @elcifltiw With nar-t ii f 1 the-tammaeafis f the-mouth nice an --F. e-- -,i a ran rers scct cnztaken a t-t em 3 i n a a :sccticntthmi sh aincrtiq zv-o the icke me hani m:ai imgeazin sonra lar e scale Fi -1i i atransvsrsescc icn- 9t mar ari a-rise a ta e "cathete 1 ha te-l5 aand 7 2 s si n xiarsectig ta acath ne 51-5 s i tto th g rawi-pssnmcre-ine eta set forth erein is v hecess ar.ytc-a sin st dinaro ithelinrcn icn- Ei '1. show :the lcws sclid-cfaa cap ma azin "1 aasta lotcan I teeth 0 W- c may not contain an -adhesiveg depending upon ,the typep -tcanin o cd.

at su ion pi ker:sm c ahismsisisenerall la .Jpssucticn trolled piston in a cylinder gg thepdetaigs of whichtare net inyolyed in the pr sent nvention.

cap skirts without afiecting the normal operation.

of the picker mechanism. The flanges are provided with conical inner surfaces 31 as shown in Fig. 3 which are disposed at an angle to conform as closely as possible to the average angle of flare of the cap skirts that are to be conveyed therethrough.

The lower portion 30 of the mouth ring is provided with ears 40 which are disposed over a sleeve 4| carried by a post 42 which is held in a 3 support 43 attached to the lower flange M of the cap magazine by means of bolts 45. The upper portion 3| of the mouth ring is provided with cars 50 having bores which fit loosely over the sleeve 4| so that the ears 50 are free to slide or pivot thereon. Springs 52 disposed around the sleeve 4! between cap nuts 53 and ears 5!! serve to resist movement of the upper portion of the mouth ring and tend to restore the same to its original position when the ring has been shifted in response to the passage of an oversize cap skirt. 7

It is obvious that if the ring is made sufficiently heavy the springs 52 maybe omitted or in certain instances additional spring means may be provided to maintain the ring in its normal position. In certain instances, however, the weight of the ring member may be such as to unduly retard the pivotal motion of the member about the sleeve 4| In that case weights as indicated at 55 may be disposed on the ears 50 in a position to counterbalance at least in part the weight of the movable ring member. The ring member may of course be hinged by other means and the springs which oppose the rocking or pivotal motion may be otherwise disposed in accordance with the effect desired and in accordance with the weight of the movable member.

In the operation of this device the upper section 31 of the mouth ring normally remains in fixed position as the caps are pulled through the opening in the lips 32 and 33 by the picker mechanism. However, in the event of the passage of an over size skirt the upper section 3| is raised slightly against the force of the springs 52 by pivoting on the sleeves 4| so as to allow the skirt to pass. The weight of the movable portion 3! and the force of the springs 52 is of course so selected with respect to the action of the suction head that the cap skirt is allowed to pass through the ring opening without stripping the cap from the suction head. In this way a substantially uniform feed is obtained regardless of the minor variations in sizes of cap skirts which occur in normal operations.

The size of the bore 5| in the ears 50 is such that the upper section 3| rocks or pivots about the sleeve 4| instead of sliding along said sleeve to any appreciable extent. The force required to move the section 3| is such that the member is adapted to move in response to the passage of a cap skirt without stripping the cap from the picker mechanism.

A specific embodiment has been shown for purposes of illustration. It is to be understood however that changes and modifications may be made therein and that the invention may be ap- 4 plied to various uses as will be apparent to a person skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

1. In a bottle capping machine, a magazine adapted to receive a stack of nested hood caps having a central diaphragm portion and rear- Wardly flaring skirts, a mouth ring disposed at the forward end or" said magazine and having a flange engaging the skirt of the foremost cap to retain the stack in said magazine and having an opening through which said cap is withdrawn, said mouth ring comprising at least two sections, a pin supporting said mouth ring, one of said sections having an ear loosely mounted on said pin to permit sliding and rocking movement thereof with respect to said pin.

2. In a bottle capping machine, a magazine adapted to receive a stack of nested hood caps having a central diaphragm portion and rearwardly flaring skirts, a mouth ring disposed at the forward end of said magazine and having a flange engaging the skirt of the foremost cap to retain the stack in said magazine and having an opening through which said cap is withdrawn, said mouth ring comprising at least two sections, a pin supporting said mouth ring, one or said sections having an ear loosely mounted on said pin to permit sliding and rocking movement thereof with respect to said pin and spring means carried by said pin to oppose such movement.

3. In a bottle capping machine, a magazine adapted to receive a stack of nested hood caps having a central diaphragm portion and rearwardly flaring skirts, a mouth ring disposed at the forward end of said magazine, said ring havmg a pair of oppositely disposed arcuate flanges to engage opposite sides of the skirt of the foremost cap to retain the stack in said magazine, said flanges being spaced apart at the top and bottom to leave openings through which the skirts pass without contact, said ring being split horizontally into top and bottom sections, said bottom section being fixed to said magazine, ears projecting axially of the magazine from said top section, and supporting pins loosely carrying said ears to permit pivotal movement of said top section in response to passage of a cap skirt.

FRANCIS C. RODMAN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,704,695 Baker Mar. 12, 1929 2,340,639 Brinton et al. Feb. 1, 1944 2,457,758 Vore Dec. 28, 1948 

